Abstract

Background: Being born with non-optimal birth characteristics has several long-term consequences on health in general but also for the individual’s reproductive pattern. In premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) the follicles are depleted or dysfunctional. This results in menopause before the age of 40, and for most of the affected women, it causes infertility. The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential effects of being born with non-optimal birth characteristics on the risk of developing POI.

Methods: This population-based cohort register study included all women born in Sweden between 1973 and 1993 who were followed until the end of 2012 (age at the end of follow-up ranged between 39 and 59). Women diagnosed with POI were compared with women without this diagnosis with respect to being born small for gestational age, preterm, or with low birth weight. Data on birth characteristics and diagnosis of POI were collected from national registers.

Results: A total of 1,033,878 women were included. Being born small for gestational age was associated with a slightly increased odds ratio of POI with 10%. Preterm birth and low birth weight were associated with somewhat increased ORs of POI after exclusion of those born small for gestational age. Similarly, being born preterm or with a low birth weight was also found to be associated with POI to the same extent.

Conclusions: Being born with non-optimal birth characteristics may increase the risk of premature ovarian insufficiency.

摘要

背景：出生时具有非最佳的出生特征，这不仅对总体健康有长期的影响，而且还会影响个人的生殖方式。在卵巢功能不全（POI）中，卵泡耗尽或功能异常。这导致更年期在40岁之前，并且对于大多数受影响的妇女而言，它会导致不孕。这项研究的目的是评估具有非最佳出生特征的出生对发生POI风险的潜在影响。

方法：这项基于人群的队列研究包括了1973年至1993年在瑞典出生的所有妇女，直到2012年底为止（随访结束时年龄在39到59岁之间）。将诊断为POI的女性与没有此诊断的女性在胎龄，早产或低出生体重方面进行比较。有关出生特征和POI诊断的数据是从国家注册处收集的。

结果：总共包括1,033,878名女性。出生于胎龄以下与POI的比值比略有增加（10％）有关。排除胎龄小的婴儿后，早产和低出生体重与POI的OR升高有些相关。同样，早产或低出生体重也被发现与POI相关程度相同。

结论：出生时的出生特征不理想可能会增加卵巢早衰的风险。